Quadrivium

The music of QUADRIVIUM is clearly shaped by the roots of European art music. Stockhausen’s, Comisso’s and Brinkmann’s compositions form a harmonious synthesis with the art of improvisation with a lightness, a kind of playfulness, strong emotional expressions and also sometimes humorous.

All four musicians are virtuosos on their instruments and have a broad palette of playing experience. Electronic sounds enhance the group’s sound scapes. The music feels close to jazz, but can amaze a more classically – or contemporary – minded audience just as much.

The group’s beginnings go back to the year 2003, when Markus Stockhausen performed the first concerts as a duo with the beguiling pianist Angelo Comisso in Italy. The German debut came the year after at the Munich Piano Festival ‘Münchener Klaviersommer’ and presented, for example, its “Sound collages of fascinating beauty” (Süddeutsche Zeitung) in the town of Fürstenfeldbruck.

Having expanded in 2004 to a trio with the addition of Christian Thomé, an extremely sensitive and virtuoso percussionist, a concert tour through Italy followed shortly after. In Trieste the opportunity to make some studio recordings arose. The result of these recordings can be heard on the beautiful CD “Lichtblick – prima, altrove …”, which appeared on the Cologne label Aktivraum in January 2005, and since has been very successful. Two more beautiful CDs followed, “Once about a time … Istanti infiniti” and “Stabat Mater” by Angelo Comisso.

In 2015 cellist Jörg Brinkmann joined the group and since then they call themselves QUADRIVIUM. Jörg is the perfect match to the trio, as if he was the missing link to a new, exciting european jazz group. His playing is stunning, based like Stockhausen’s and Comisso’s background on classical as well as on jazz music. Together they create a beautiful new sound.

A rich and varied mixtureMarkus Stockhausen’s Quadrivium: an inner film unreels in the audience

“A unique sound concept: a music of transition, floating in space, that gives the listener an idea of transcending the present – and thus of freedom. Full of spiritual power but by no means esoteric; flooding the whole room, but firmly anchored in great depth; luminous, but never dazzling; unobtrusive, but constantly handcrafted in supreme brilliance. …. musical stringency at the very moment of its climax, i. e. precisely when it unreservedly opens up to the listener – there are currently only a handful of quite varying ensembles such as the Tarkovsky Quartet or Quadrivium, who succeed in this feat. .” Volker Doberstein, Jazz Podium 10/17

Markus Stockhausen calls some of his music intuitive and this is a clear indication that labels, genres or the dissection into musical categories are not intended or desired. What the four members of his Quadrivium conjured within the concert series “All that Jazz@Starnberg” in the nearly sold out Starnberger Schlosshalle was indeed a highly rich and varied mixture, the elements of which, however, were closely intertwined and skilfully modelled to a convincing musical unit.
What Markus certainly learnt from his father the celebrated composer Karl-Heinz Stockhausen, is the ability to find the correct dosage as well as a clear sense of proportion. In this he can also completely depend on his fellow musicians who sense exactly when simplicity will increase effectivity.
A central element in the music of this formation – often enriched with reverberation and echo – was without doubt the atmosphere. This is because each of the pieces evoked concrete images and fired the imagination of the listeners. Beginning with “Our Father” in which the syllables of the prayer are translated into sound, then soaring in celestial flight with “Into the Stars”, or the oriental “Kult”, the opulent “Mondtraum” from “Oliver’s Adventure” then moving on to “Better World” or “Warmes Licht”, each of these titles not only suggest particular moods, they also open a considerable space for experiment in sound and arrangement.
The four musicians are highly attuned with each other and take advantage of this space – but thoughtfully, with much awareness for delicate nuances and a continual feeling for gradual and ongoing development within the pieces. The result was the unfolding of an inner film as sensual as the works of Peter Greenaway and as mystical as those of Andrej Tarkowski. And a storm of applause and an encore. by Reinhard Palmer, Süddeutsche Zeitung, October 2016

Markus Stockhausen at the the Red Sea Winter Jazz Festival, Eilat 2019
The festival which got amazing revues as “The best festival ever” was proud to have in this year’s lineup the German trumpet player Markus Stockhausen. His music with QUADRIVIUM hypnotized the audience – the critic in “Ïsrael Today” described the concert as “beautiful meditative pieces on the edge of classical music wrapped in an electronic envelope”.
Yuval Erel wrote: “Markus Stockhausen had a seminar called “Singing and Silence” and that is exactly what we heard in his music. I remembered the way from Switzerland to Lichtenstein – snowy hills on blue lakes, cows in the meadow, children running in this beautiful scenery… it filled me with unexplainable feelings…how delicate. Not a blowing trumpet trying to impress, just a lot of humble musicality…amazing modesty!“

Far into the stars

The new CD by QUADRIVIUM released by OKeh/Sony Music.

For this CD Markus Stockhausen received in 2018 the prestigious Echo Jazz Prize. Listen !

Markus Stockhausen is one of the most versatile musicians of our time. He is as much at home in jazz as in contemporary and classical music. For about 25 years he collaborated closely with his father, the composer Karlheinz Stockhausen, who composed many beautiful works for him. With his brother Simon he realised several internationally acclaimed musical projects.
As soloist, improviser and composer Markus Stockhausen is in international demand. He leads or collaborates in various ensembles with musicians like Arild Andersen, Patrice Héral, Mark Nauseef, Jörg Brinkmann, Angelo Comisso, Christian Thomé, Ferenc Snétberger, Florian Weber, and plays intuitive music in the duo Moving Sounds with his wife the clarinettist Tara Bouman. His group Eternal Voyage features musicians from India, the Netherlands and Lebanon. From the year 2000 until 2010 he directed a concert series called Klangvisionen with intuitive music in the church of St. Maternus in Cologne.

This exciting avant-garde cellist expands the boundaries of the violoncello in his very own way to great, astounding effect. He has found an unmistakably specific style with his unique approach using different playing-techniques unusual and unheard of for his instrument.

These techniques ranging from guitar inspired to a groove orientated Bass playing encompassing Upright and Electric bass, combined with the tasteful use of electronics have made him emerge as a multifaceted player in a number of highly regarded, successful and stylistically different bands and productions.
Brinkmann has won several classical and jazz-concours.
He is part of jazz groups, chamber ensembles, crossover theater, dance- productions, also frequently requested for pop. He has been invited to play concert halls and festivals all over the world.
Jörg Brinkmann has released over 15 records on various well known international music labels like ACT-Music, Jazzsick and Challenge Records.

His musical character is faithfully expressed in his own trio (JÖRG BRINKMANN TRIO) with pianist Oliver Maas and drummer Dirk-Peter Kölsch, with whom he recorded the album Ha! for the German label ACT-MUSIC, and in the trio
„OLIVER ́S CINEMA“ with trumpet player Eric Vloeimans and Accordionist Tuur Florizoone. (Challenge Records)
He is part of Markus Stockhausen’s „Quadrivium“.
In addition to this he works with great musicians like Michael Schiefel (PLATYPUS TRIO- BMC RECORDS) or Claudio Puntin (TRIO DOLCE VITA).

„All About Jazz“ says:
„He creates a multifaceted stylistic approach, comfortably assuming the role of bassist with the kind of groove that would be unexpected from a classically trained cellist, were it not for his extensive, genre-rich resumé. He represents the viewpoint that jazz tradition is but one aspect of contemporary improvised music.“

drummer, composer, producer, teacher
Born in 1970, Christian Thomé grew up in Düsseldorf, Germany, playing music ranging from pop, rock and fusion to swing. He began playing drums at age 14, after he had already been studying the clarinet and piano from the age of 6. In 1991 he went to Arnhem, the Netherlands, to attend the Arnhem Institut for the Arts, where he studied with Joop van Erven and René Creemers. During this time he led his own bands and consolidated his skills in composing and arranging. In 1997 he moved to Cologne, Germany, and has since become one of the most in demand drummers in germany’s jazz/new music scene today.

In addition to co-leading and composing for the groups a si & twice no, Mariana Sadovska & Christian Thomé and Arnie Bolden, Christian records and tours with diverse groups including Trio Ivoire, Niobe, Trio Stockhausen/Comisso/Thomé, Nanoschlaf, Alony, and The Bliss. He recorded the debut CD “diving” of the trio collective Arnie Bolden in his own studio, where he also worked out a major arranging part for the latest CD “Entfernung” of the German pop oriented group Lühning.

Christian is currently recording with the trio a si & twice no (Simin Tander – voice and Jörg Brinkmann – cello) and producing the new duo CD with Mariana Sadovska. His latest cd “hauptstrom” and debut album as a leader with his septet Tomatic 7 is available on JHM Recordings. He is teaching jazz drums at the conservatory of Osnabrück.

“Trumpeter Markus Stockhausen and his Quadrivium-companions shone in the Kunstraum an der Hofstraße. The opening concert of the Jazztage was sold out….[]four outstanding masters of their art but ones who are able to free themselves from the most ludicrously brilliant solos and find their way straight back to the musical common ground.RPR, Hildener Jazztage 2015

„The weaving of chamber music and modern jazz, of composition and improvisation went through the whole programme like a common thread. Grooving, spurring and whooping, the quartet pulled all the stops available to aesthetically-minded sound painters and magicians. The acoustically brilliant result was rewarded with standing ovation from the round 100 listeners at the end of the evening.“ Gießener Allgemeine

„Wherever one turned to listen in this enormous diversity, it was simply excellent.“ Gießener Anzeiger

“An outstanding prelude to the 20. Hildener Jazztage. The public just revelled in the band.“nrwjazz.net